Page 137 of Masters of Secrets

It was days like this that Julie hated her job. At least she had her date tonight with Connor to make up for it.

Cassidy was a submissive who had been in an abusive relationship with a dominant. She’d been lucky—they’d come to Stronghold, and Don had gotten kicked out after ignoring her safeword. The problem was her ex wasn’t done with her, and there was nothing she or Julie or anyone could do about it. Not legally, at least.

He’d started stalking Cassidy, at first with notes left on her car or in her mailbox, and now with calls coming from duped phone numbers. Not that he said anything. He just breathed heavily into the phone and made growling noises, which might have been comical under other circumstances, but knowing who it was made Cassidy fall to pieces every time.

Even with the restraining order, there wasn’t shit they could do about it since they couldn’t prove it was him. The police were no help. Basically, until he did something violent, they were useless—and from many of the instances Julie had seen, even after there was violence, the police were often far from helpful.

There was only so much she could do to help Cassidy’s state of mind when her biggest problem was currently external, not internal.

“I just want to stop being afraid all the time.” Cassidy huddled on the couch, arms wrapped around herself, hugging herself. Her long dark hair fell forward, covering most of her face, as though she was trying to hide behind it.

“I know. And you deserve that.” Julie kept her voice soothing, even though she felt like screaming in rage at her own helplessness. It wasn’t fair that Cassidy was having to spend her life in fear while that asshole Don strutted around with impunity.

The fact he’d gotten more fixated on Cassidy rather than moving on didn’t bode well. Neither did the slow escalations from notes to phone calls and the decreased time between contact. That he was going to keep escalating, that he was eventually going to hurt Cassidy again, Julie had no doubt.

But there was nothing she could do.

“Patrick thinks I should relocate.” Cassidy lifted her head, meeting Julie’s gaze. Her face was incredibly pale. “His cousin works for a security firm in Pittsburgh.”

“The one that Kincaid is working with now?” Julie asked automatically. She knew the Dom had recently moved from the police force to a private security firm that wanted to open a DC office.

Cassidy nodded.

“They have a good reputation. Do you want to move?”

“No… yes… I don’t know.” Cassidy dropped her head down again and shuddered. She took in a deep breath and let it out.

Julie waited patiently, proud of the progress Cassidy had made. She was working her way through her breathing exercises, through her emotions, rather than allowing them to control her.

“Part of me wants to run away. Part of me is mad that I feel that way. But I also… what’s worse, running away or dying? It feels like he wins either way, but at least one way I’m still alive.”

Dammit. And Julie couldn’t even reassure her that staying wouldn’t mean her death. There was every chance it would. She couldn’t diagnose Don since he wasn’t her patient, but his obsessive fixation wasn’t going to just suddenly go away.

“So, you’d be staying with Patrick’s cousin?” It was a bold move. Send her hours away to live with someone who had the skills to protect her if asshole figured out where she was and followed her.

Not that there weren’t people here who would be willing and ready to protect her, but none of them belonged to a security firm. Well, except Kincaid, but he was helping set up the new office, so he could hardly be on call 24/7. Plus, he was distracted by whatever was going on with him and Zach. Throwing a submissive in danger into the mix was hardly going to be good for any of them, including Cassidy. She needed to be around stability, even if asshole Don wasn’t a factor.

Cassidy nodded.

“Drew and his wife, Naomi. They’re the ones who rescued Morgan.” Hope crept into her voice, giving it a little lift. The fact that they’d already rescued another abusive submissive seemed to make her feel better.

Julie hadn’t been around then, but she’d heard some of what had brought Morgan to Stronghold.

“It sounds like you want to say yes.”

“I…” Cassidy blew out her breath, lifting her head and staring out the window of Julie’s office. “I think I do, but I hate the idea of leaving. I hate the idea of being chased away. I hate feeling this weak. And…” Her voice trailed off.

“And?” Julie prodded gently after a moment of silence.

Cassidy gulped and closed her eyes. Wet tears dotted her lashes.

“I don’t want people here to think I’m ungrateful.”

“Oh, honey.” It might not be professional, but Julie didn’t care. Sometimes, when it came to her clients from the club, the lines blurred a little. Especially with someone like Cassidy. Julie reached out and put her hand on Cassidy’s, prompting the other woman to open her eyes again. “No one is going to think you’re ungrateful. They’re just going to be happy you’re taking care of yourself. That you’re safe.”

Hitch in her breath, Cassidy nodded.

“No one will think you’re weak, either. They’ll think you’re smart, going to a place where you’re more likely to be safe. That’s not an option for everyone.”